Welcome to MeanMesa! The blog for those who have become suspicious of everything else...

Sunday, July 9, 2017

Rachel and MSNBC Ratings Leaving FOX In the Dust

A Brief Glimpse of New Trends in American Media:

FOX Is Wounded.

It's finally about time.

The prime time blowhards at FOX Broadcasting have spent the past few years wallowing in an irritating ebullience -- perhaps better described as an "irritating inebriation" -- while basking in the constantly darkening lamps of the reactionary network. All the while high FOX audience ratings rolled into Murdoch's executive offices daily, very dependably, further "stoking the flames" of the Hannity/Limbaugh/O'Reilly style ideological, show biz arrogance without interruption.

A very large part of Murdoch's "business success" was his corporate ability to purchase and dominate hundreds of domestic media outlets. FOX was nowhere close to profitable during its earliest years, but huge amounts of out right "contributions" from the wacky billionaire right kept the thing above water until it could develop a sufficiently reactionary audience to sustain it.

By five years ago FOX "news stars" were the voices of hundred of hours of broadcast time every week. Limbaugh's hateful daily show was being broadcast and re-broadcast in some localities in the morning, early afternoon and evening. This saturation was made possible by the almost unlimited corporate war chest. Predictably, when the same rancid broadcast was all that was available in such markets, the audience ratings sky rocketed -- and stayed there.

For years it seemed that no power on Earth could "break the spell" of the FOX-billionaire juggernaut.

Then, THIS happened.MeanMesa has included two reports. Interestingly, both articles were posted in the entertainment section of the publications.

For the first time in 17 years, MSNBC has snagged the No. 1 spot in prime time cable news.

The move in May to the top spot in the weekday prime time ratings among the coveted 25-to-54 age demographic, The New York Times reports, is mainly thanks to network host Rachel Maddow and her show, The Rachel Maddow Show. The liberal anchor and the network as a whole has benefited from a time of great anxiety and unrest on America's political left in the era of President Donald Trump. What's more, MSNBC has been doing well with that key 25-to-54 age demographic. In May, the Times reports, it beat its rivals for the highest prime time viewership on weeknights in that age demographic. That's up 118% from a year earlier.

Nielsen ratings show that Fox News still remained the top cable news channel during primetime in overall viewers, and in total day viewership. And in daytime ratings, however, MSNBC is still ranked No.3. But its morning and afternoon audience is growing rapidly. In May, total viewership between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. almost doubled from the year before, the Times reports, far outpacing the growth of rivals Fox News and CNN.

MSNBC averaged about 611,000; CNN drew 589,000 and Fox News trailed with 497,000 — as Fox historically draws much older viewers who are considered less desirable to Madison Avenue executives.

The industry is rife with theories as to why this is happening now.

Some believe that Fox News and President Trump friendly surrogates like Hannity are doing a poor job covering the near daily scandals erupting around the Trump White House.

Others believe the discord and scandal that has rocked Fox News’ primetime lineup, especially the loss of Bill O’Reilly, who went down in a sexual harassment scandal, has severely weakened the once dominant channel.

This News Means Much More Than Cable Ratings

Perhaps the fever has broken, and we can have a sigh of relief.

Although these articles were posted in the NY Daily News and FORTUNE entertainment section, the impact of this development will probably enjoy a prominent place in the History of the United States through the 21st Century. FOX had been doing everything possible to undercut the American democracy, and FOX broadcast content had been entirely directed at "grooming" an electoral demographic into a state which, ultimately, began to deliver quite un-American election results.

We see Murdoch's "empire of deceit and persuasion" faltering -- big time -- with the news that Maddow and MSNBC have now topped FOX's ratings. MeanMesa is not at all convinced that the FOX front line actors precipitated this with their misogyny scandals. The audience currently driving the network ratings may have simply outgrown Murdoch's incendiary adolescence. A year ago Trump was FOX's most exciting, future "business asset." However, as viewers have had a chance to take a closer look at Trump, maybe they've also taken a closer look at FOX.

More than a few of them are currently manifesting the red faced embarrassment which accompanies buyer'sremorse.